The design and architecture of the OCO spacecraft bus is based on the successful Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) and (Galaxy Explorer) GALEX missions.

by Staff WritersHouston TX (SPX) Jan 18, 2008
SPACEHAB has announced that its Astrotech Space Operations subsidiary has won an additional fully funded task order under the recently awarded Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB) indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract. The Company will provide facilities and payload processing services, from its VAFB location, in support of NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO) mission, scheduled for launch in December 2008.

Led by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the OCO mission is the third mission competed and won by Astrotech, under a $35 million IDIQ contract awarded in June 2007, to provide facilities and payload processing support on several NASA spacecraft missions.

The OCO is a new Earth orbiting mission sponsored by NASA's Earth System Science Pathfinder (ESSP) Program. The ESSP Program addresses unique, specific, highly-focused requirements in Earth science research. After launch in 2008, the OCO mission will collect space-based measurements of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) with the precision, resolution, and coverage necessary to improve understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this greenhouse gas. This improved understanding will enable more reliable forecasts of future changes in the abundance and distribution of CO2.

From Titusville, Florida, Vandenberg Air Force Base, California and the Sea Launch Home Port facilities in California, Astrotech provides all support necessary for government and commercial customers to successfully process their satellite hardware for launch, including advance planning; use of unique facilities; and spacecraft checkout, encapsulation, fueling, transport, and remote control through launch.

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